Much worse than the politicians can admit

Various people have criticized President Obama for being too downbeat about the economic crisis, and in fact, as his budget demonstrates, he has used the sense of crisis to put forward a quite radical agenda that, like his stimulus bill that mainly stimulated bigger government, is likely to receive much less extensive informed debate than it deserves to the overweening sense of crisis. I view that as reasonably unconscionable, of course, and the argument that the American people bought every aspect of everything he hinted at vaguely in the campaign is absurd; they bought him largely because he made them feel less nervous than McCain did.

In fact, however, as I argue in this piece for the Register's Commentary section yesterday, he and most politicians have been all too upbeat about the crisis, in part by failing to acknowledge the entitlement crisis that is still breathing down our necks and madly expanding the government house of cards in the face of it. Barack's program is virtually guaranteed to make things worse rather than better -- at which time the media courtiers who dance attendance on the emperor will blame the fialure on the unfettered free market and demand even bigger government.

Budget goofiness

Here's a link to the Register's editorial on the bloated budget Congress passed and the president signed this week. Play games with money for the Iraq war (which eventually came with no strings or even pretenses, but in a way that allowed some Democrats to vote against it and look tough), and include lots of earmarks, which everybody condemns but all legislators love. I especially liked Ill. Sen. Dick Durbin's response to the effect that he can't wait to put out a press release to brag about all the goodies he got for Illinois. So long as legislators think their job is to get a piece of the booty for themeselves and their constituents we'll have elections that are advance auctions of stolen goods.